A freshly sown (and watered) cover crop field on a golden October afternoon.
I keep a five-year journal for our family, in which I write things of interest for each day: the weather, any note-worthy sightings or events (eating the first ripe tomato of the year, for example), and a short description of our day. It’s all very brief, but now I’ve been keeping it for over a year, and I’m starting to reap the benefit of a journal of this style. Each page is assigned one day of the year, and then there are five entry spots, one for each year.
This layout allows me to very easily look back at what we were doing at this same time last year as I make entries now, which is very cool. I’ve attempted to keep a multiple year journal like this several times before, but this time it’s actually sticking and it’s serving exactly the purpose I’d hoped. It provides written documentation of our often foggy memories of seasons and events.
For example, our memory of last fall, winter, and spring is that it was so dark, wet, and gloomy. Of course, weather records back this up — it certainly was an exceptional year in terms of number of rainy days and total rainfall. But now I have my own records to look back on too, which also verify our “sense” of last year. Here are some of the quick weather notes from last year, starting on September 30:
“partly sunny, turned to rain”
“62° [high] but mostly cool, windy & rainy”
“58° Rainy & gray-ish”
“57°! Rainy, cool, gray DOWN RIGHT CHILLY!”
“Rainy & gray most of the day!”
“62° Very rainy & blustery then sunny!”
“61° Gray & rainy – very fall!”
“59°! Rainy all.day.long.”
“68° gray but surprisingly warm!”
“53° & very rainy all day long”
I think you get the idea! It continues in that vein most days in October. I even use redundant descriptors such as “WET RAIN,” suggesting that it was rainy indeed.
As summer neared its end this year, I found myself bracing for fall’s arrival. All that extra rain and darkness last year was hard for us as a family and as a farm. It wasn’t brutal or devastating the way weather has been for so many in our country this fall (our hearts go out to so many displaced people in our country right now), but it was still challenging. And, as is often the case, our memories of the most recent season loomed out of proportion to the averages. All those beautiful falls we’d experienced on the farm were dwarfed by the recent proximity of one hard fall.
So, it’s been such a relief to find fall again this year — an Oregon autumn that brings with it rain, yes. But also days with golden sunlight, and sunbreaks even on the rainy days. By November, the chances of clear days certainly can be expected to drop, but it’s been so glorious on the farm to have these final days of easy working weather (and easy playing outside weather too). Casey was able to work up our fields and sow an oat and clover cover crop for the winter (which has now been watered in thanks to the rain). It may not last much longer. Next year may be different. But, on each sunny day we can still savor this October’s glow. It’s a reminder that every day is a gift to be appreciated.
Enjoy this week’s vegetables!
Your farmers, Katie & Casey Kulla
~ ~ ~
Luminous Heart
Fall CSA open house this Saturday, 2-4 pm!
And speaking of sun, the weather is predicted to be fine for our gathering on Saturday. Please come out to join us for a variety of activities on the farm. We’ll have a dozen of our favorite apple varieties sliced up for you to taste side-by-side (and vote on your favorite!). Casey will give tours of the farm. And, local acoustic musical duo Luminous Heart will be playing!
Directions to the farm: Take Hwy-18 to Dayton and drive south through Dayton on Wallace Rd/HWY-221. Keep driving south on Wallace for about seven miles and then turn LEFT onto Grand Island Rd (you’ll see signs for Heiser’s Pumpkin Patch). At the first intersection after the bridge, turn RIGHT onto SE Upper Island Rd. Our driveway is the first on your LEFT (you’ll see our red pole barn at the road). If you have any questions, my cell is 503-474-7661.
Meet this week’s vegetables:
- Apples
- Pears — Did you know that pears don’t ripen “properly” on the tree? If left to ripen on the branch, they usually turn mealy. However, they are “mature” before they are soft, and that is when they are traditionally picked (you can tell before they start to fall off the tree and/or are easy to pick). But then they need to be allowed to soften off of the branch, which will result in a smooth soft flesh — the kind most people prefer. This process begins in our cooler, so it’s likely that some of your pears may be ready to eat when you pick them up, but if not set one or two on your counter for a day or two and let them soften further. A perfect pear is divine!
- Grapes
- Tomatoes
- Peppers
- Salad mix — Casey thinks this week’s salad mix is extra beautiful. It’s also extra flavorful, as we move into the season of having greens other than just lettuce in our mixes. This week’s mix does include some tasty tender lettuces, but it also contains baby arugula (which can be a bit spicy), baby kale, and baby Asian greens.
- Cabbage
- Chard
- Kale
- Beets
- Spaghetti squash
- Delicata winter squash
- Pie pumpkins — Wondering how to use to use a fresh pie pumpkin? It’s easy, if you plan ahead! We cook our pumpkins whole (many years ago we tried to peel a pumpkin, and it’s hard work!). Just pop the whole thing on a baking sheet and put it in the oven at 350° until you can slide a paring knife in to the side without resistance (it helps to remove the stem, just to make sure it fits). Once the pumpkin is cooked all the way through, cut it open and let it cool off. At this point, the seeds will scoop out easily. Once it is room temperature, you can measure our the pumpkin flesh and mash it to use in any pumpkin or squash recipe — pie, muffins, cookies, soup, etc.
- Garlic
